Ümi Farms Is Serious About Social Equity

As cannabis continues to be socially accepted and flourish in the legal market, the new industry must come to terms with the discriminatory and damaging past of the failed War on Drugs. For decades, thousands of citizens have been—and continue to be—unjustly convicted and incarcerated and now live with the many societal disadvantages of a criminal cannabis conviction. To combat these many disadvantages for a once crime that’s now legal in some form in much more than half the US, progressive states are implementing policies to include individuals from areas that were devastated by the draconian policies of the decades-long failure of the drug war. Known as social equity, these programs could provide opportunities for lucrative business ownership in communities that are often overlooked for economic opportunities.

A new cannabis brand out of Chicago has made social equity a cornerstone of its corporate ethos while also combining and respecting the urban American subcultures that pushed weed culture into the mainstream. Ümi Farms is a parent company for cannabis brands specifically geared toward social equity causes, including ÜMI retail dispensaries and the ÜMI Farms craft cannabis cultivation facility. It was founded by CEO Akele Parnell, an attorney and cannabis activist who’s deeply committed and entrenched in those very topics on multiple fronts.

Parnell has served a number of legal and advocacy roles for various cannabis companies and organizations. A graduate of Washington University in St. Louis’ Law School, Parnell previously held the position of in-house counsel for Green Thumb Industries and staff attorney for the Chicago Lawyers’​ Committee for Civil Rights. In advocacy, Parnell has been involved with Chicago NORML for half a decade and been a board member since 2020.

“Pretty much immediately after joining the industry, I wondered where all the people from communities were that have been devastated by the War on Drugs,” Parnell says. So, I set out on a mission to bring more folks like me into the industry.”

Illinois became the 11th state to legalize medical and adult-use cannabis on January 1, 2020, when the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act came into effect. The state opened applications for new cannabis licenses later that year, a historic measure that received more than 600 social equity applications. Unlike other states’ flawed implementation of social equity, Parnell describes Illinois’ approach as “robust” despite initial challenges. “We were successful in getting licenses into the hands of hundreds of social equity and Black and Latino-owned businesses,” he says. “A lot is still left to be desired when achieving the process of social equity. Hopefully, in the relatively near future, we can get to a good spot where we can feel that we’ve accomplished the things we set out to.”

Ümi Farms recognizes cannabis’ decorated legacy and the socially restorative future that the plant could have. The name Ümi is quite interesting from a language standpoint, as it translates into different words in different languages, while the meanings all represent life. In Japanese, “Ümi” means “ocean;” in Arabic, “Ümi” means “mother,” “foundation” and “source.” In the language of the Mambwe people from Zambia and Tanzania, “Ümi” translates to “life.” In his 1999 debut album, Black on Both Sides, Mos Def included a song called “Ümi Says.”  According to Parnell, the name “has an important meeting to the cannabis ecosystem we’re building.”

Lab 11 is the first brand launched under Ümi Farms. Parnell describes it as their “ultimate brainchild.” “A minority and veteran-owned social equity brand, Lab 11 is as diverse, dynamic and determined as the communities we aim to uplift through the transformative power of the plant,” he says. 

Inspired by the creativity of contemporary urban subcultures and a nostalgia for the golden era of the industry, Lab 11 celebrates the legacy of cannabis culture—progressive, free, countercultural and provocative—all while exploring it’s impacts throughout time. “It’s our answer to a legal cannabis market full of brands that don’t really speak our language,” Parnell says. “There hasn’t been an opportunity for a brand to be brought by folks that are immersed in these progressive, free and countercultural ecosystems and environments in Chicago. It includes a lot of activists, a lot of creatives, a lot of chefs, a lot of cultural workers and ultimately, that’s what Lab 11 is about.”

The majority of Lab 11’s owners and operators were raised in communities deeply impacted by previous drug policies, such as the Woodlawn neighborhood in Chicago. “We’ve been doing advocacy for social equity across the country pretty much the entire time we’ve been in the industry,” Parnell says. “As the brand grows, we’ll continue to give opportunities to people from communities that have been disproportionately impacted and we’ll find ways to give back.”

Parnell says that Ümi Farms and Lab 11 will continue to partner with brands and individuals who hold similarly advanced views on social equity and further reforms from horribly damaging drug laws outside of cannabis. The brand will also be creating a sort of mentorship program in the Illinois industry, where those who are aspiring to work in cannabis will be paired up with employees to receive on-the-job training.

“We’ll continue to build that ecosystem and that community and create a safe place for people to come and enjoy the plant,” Parnell says. “We’ll continue to find ways to build and increase social equity in Illinois.”